


Origin Stories

by EvieMcGarrett10



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-03-17
Updated: 2014-04-18
Packaged: 2018-01-16 00:49:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 19,454
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1325524
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EvieMcGarrett10/pseuds/EvieMcGarrett10
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>From the beginning right to the very end. Steve and Danny's life through the years featuring their growing Ohana as told by their daughter. Original characters and some old faces!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi All, 
> 
> First I want to say thank you for all of the comments, kudos and support for my previous two stories, Contradictions Walk and Talk & No Price Too High. It is an honor to have my work be worthy of your time! Mahalo!
> 
> The following series is something that I have been working on since I caught on to Steve and Danny's relationship on H50 and discovered the McDanno fandom online. I was really, really, really glad that I did! :) 
> 
> I hope that you like this as well. I will be updating this every week, barring any other complication. Life happens as many of you probably know! ;)
> 
> Once again, Mahalo and Enjoy! All comments welcome!
> 
> PS, the italics are recollections/memories/past occurences, etc.

**Memorial Day**

It should not be so hard after all this time.

Everyone had left the cemetery hours ago. It would not be long before Eddie came and got her. He always did.

On every anniversary, every birthday, every holiday she would come here with her family and be the last to leave. And on every single one of those occasions, her twin brother Eddie was there to take her home. Jackson, her husband of 15 wonderful years, would stay with the kids while she got a grip on herself with her brother’s help. It was not an offense for him, but more of a sibling tradition. Stevie always ran back to Jack and her kids after all was said and done no matter who came and got her.

She looked at her parents’ tombstones and let the soft breeze roll over her in soft waves. As silly as it was, she always believed the breeze was her Daddy and Danno’s way of saying that they were always here with them, with her. It was a sweet reassurance and a sign that they were never far away. Standing alone in the cemetery also always made her remember the good times in order to balance out the sadness that came at never being able to see their kind faces again. . . .

_Stevie Williams-McGarrett Ward looked out at the setting sun along the horizon. She let the roaring ocean waves relax her and melt all her troubles away._

_A few yards behind her, her parents’ house sat, brimming with laughing people and excited children. She could hear how much fun they were having inside and it only made her happier and more content. Stevie could practically feel her husband chasing after their 3 year old daughter, Kresley, while Danno laughed the whole time. He loved to tell her and Jackson how this was payback for Stevie giving him the run around. Dad would usually say that it was him and not Danno that would be chasing her around because Danno liked to let Steve know how she got that from him and he should be the one chasing her around. It was playful banter and something that never got old._

_She had just come back from her last mission in the Middle East. Jackson had become permanently stationed in Oahu to stay with the kids, giving her a chance to stay operational as a Navy SEAL. It was not such an easy agreement to come to. In truth, neither one of them wanted to give up their careers, but once she got pregnant with Raylan, she knew that things would have to change. She offered to become a stay at home mom which earned her a look from Jackson. Then she suggested that she could take over 5-0 from her dad since at the time he was a few months from retiring along with Danno. That did not cut it for Jackson, arguing that one of them needed to have a job that required no life threatening situations. They could not, as he put it, orphan their children so soon in life. Stevie knew he was right, but she also knew the adrenaline that came with chasing down bad guys was too intoxicating to give up. Jackson made the “ultimate” sacrifice and took a desk job at Pearl. Stevie wanted to reprimand him for doing so, but Jackson’s mind was made up. It made her feel bad that he was the one to have to give up his life as a SEAL. It only took one look from him, that honest and heartwarming look of his to tell her that this is what he wanted. This was not a “you owe me one” situation. It was an “I love you and I am doing this for us and the baby” deal._

_So, Stevie would be out saving the world while Jackson stayed home to take care of the kids. Dad and Danno helped out whenever they could, usually having a house full of children with Eddie’s kids as well. No kid retirement for them. They stopped being full time parents only to become full time grandparents. Eddie and Stevie would tell them that they did not have to take the kids every weekend, but they insisted that if they did not have kids running around the house they would surely shoot each other. Stevie and Eddie laughed their asses off. That they could believe, so they had their kids visit with their granddads whenever they wanted them._

_Today was daddy’s birthday and everyone was inside enjoying some ice cream cake. She came outside to get some air and reflect on everything that had happened up until that point which included some much needed relaxation after her ordeal in the East. It had only been a few days, not nearly enough to get over everything. She had been a SEAL for almost ten years now, enough time for her to know how to compartmentalize, but somehow she always came back and went through a small period of depression. Small because it was only a matter of time before her kids and her husband got her out of her funk. Stevie smiled as she remembered the kiss she received every morning from each of her kids and the loving bear hugs from her hot husband. It always amazed her how lucky she was to have such a wonderful family. They were her heart and soul, something she made sure she remembered every time she boarded a plane to leave them for months at a time. Something she remembered on cold nights out with her team in some godforsaken desert. She had a family to get back to, a soul that needed to find its home again._

_“What are you doing out here all alone, sweetheart?” she heard her dad say as he stood next to her._

_“Watching the sunset. You know how much I love them,” Stevie answered._

_“More like you need the relaxation they bring after your last black ops mission,” her dad said._

_“Eddie may be my twin, but you most definitely know me better than him sometimes,” Stevie replied._

_“You were named after me for a reason,” he said simply._

_“Danno sure knew what he was doing when he did so. You know me so well because I am just like you.”_

_“His exact words were, ‘Geez, you big jerk your genes are so powerful that I am looking at the female version of you. Same eyes, same mouth, same chin, same freakin’ look of defiance. Lets name her Stevie,’” he chuckled when he finished._

_Stevie laughed too. She had heard this story before, but she enjoyed it every time her father told it. It was sort of their thing._

_“You know how it is dad. Every. Single. Time.”_

_“I know, baby girl, I know. You are not alone you know that right?”_

_“Never felt like it. I envy Eddie. He is just so collected all the time whenever he comes back. Alyssa never has to deal with a depressed and moody spouse.”_

_“Eddie just has a different way of dealing with these types of things, but his eyes betray him and I know Alyssa sees it too.”_

_Stevie sighed.“Yeah. He has the same look that we all do.”_

_Her father turned around and looked at her, “You always get back on your feet. You are a fighter, Stevie. You always were. Eddie is too. Not only does your job require it, but so does your family. Raylan and Kresley are lucky to have such an incredible mom,” her dad was hugging her at this point. This was more of a father-daughter hug. It made her feel like she was five again, hugging her dad to chase the bad things away._

_“You should be inside eating cake dad. Not out here with me,” Stevie said._

_“I came looking for you because your dad said that if I did not bring his daughter inside to have some cake he would see to it that I suffer.”_

_“Did he make the cake?”_

_“Yes.”_

_“I thought he bought it?”_

_“That is what he says to be on the safe side in case it sucks. If everyone loves it, which it looks like everyone does, then he takes credit. Otherwise, ‘that old broad at the bakery swore it was her best and that every customer loves it.’”_

_“Oh, Danno. He can be so funny sometimes,” Stevie said with a smile._

_“Absolutely hilarious. Come on baby girl. He is anxiously waiting for your humble opinion.”_

_Steve and Stevie made their way inside the house to curious looks from the guests. Only Eddie and Jackson kept their faces neutral. They knew what was up._

_“Honey, have some cake it’s the best one I have made so far,” Danno said as he gave Stevie a piece of cake._

_She took a bite and he was right. It was delicious. “Geez, Danno, you outdid yourself this time,” Stevie congratulated as she hugged Danno._

_“I know right? Hey, everyone is sitting in the living room for story time. You better eat quick,” Danno announced._

_“Really? Again? I did story time last week,” Stevie said._

_“Yeah well, Uncle Chin and Auntie Kono were not here then and today they are. You know how it is sweetie, they love how you tell the Origin Stories” Danno said with a smile._

_“Only because I had great story tellers teach me,” Stevie eyed her dads meaningfully._

_“We lost our touch and besides, they hear enough of our ranting already so they need your enthusiastic perspective,” Steve told her._

_“Hey we do not rant, we politely argue,” Danno defended._

_“‘Politely argue’? Yeah that is original coming from you,” Steve replied._

_“Just because I told you that you should not have tried to fix the leaky pipes under the sink because you would make it worse does not mean I rant!”_

_“I said I could handle it! How was I supposed to know that it was a problem that needed fixing from the main water system underground! At least I got somebody to fix it!”_

_“We had to live underwater for 4 days just because you thought you ‘could handle it’ and because the idiot plumbers said that this was a problem for the water company who in turn took an additional two days just to get here!”_

_“Guys, guys, chill okay. I’ll do story time,” Stevie said with a laugh._

_“What’s going on here?” Eddie said as he came into the kitchen._

_“Marital problems, what else?” Stevie told her brother as she made her way passed him to the living room._

_“Dad, Danno, chill. No need for divorce threats like last time,” Eddie, the ever patient and sane one, said._

_“I almost did divorce this Neanderthal that time.”_

_“I almost let you divorce me too.”_

_“Come one you love birds, time to get this show on the road” Stevie yelled from her position on the brown Lazy Boy in the living room._

_“Come on you two. You heard the girl,” Eddie said as he pushed his dads out of the kitchen._

_Everyone had already taken their places around Stevie. All the adults sat on the couches, love seats and chairs. Kono and Chin’s family were there as well. Their kids were her and John’s age who had their babies in arms, baby seats or on someone’s lap. Her dad had Kresley in his lap while six year old Raylan sat in his father’s lap. Danno had Celine, Eddie’s eldest in his arms on the couch next to Steve. Timmy sat with his mother, Alyssa, on the love seat while Eddie held one month old Jason in his arms, his third child._

_“_ _Alrighty kids. Which one will it be this time?” Stevie announced._

“Hey. You ready to join the land of the living now?” Eddie said as he walked towards her.

Stevie jumped a little. She was momentarily startled because she was so lost in her memories. Nevertheless, she smiled at her baby brother and gratefully returned his hug.

“I did not mean to scare you sis. I should have been more careful, you might have seriously hurt me.”

“Don’t ask me how, but I know when it is someone I trust. Otherwise, your arms and legs would have been broken in eight different places,” Stevie replied.

“Those instincts of yours were always your best weapon. They are the reason the Navy and your team really lamented your retirement. They lost the best Navy SEAL Commander they had seen in years,” Eddie said.

“I miss them bad, but they knew I had a family to look after. They would have found someone as good as me eventually.”

“You mean as _great_ as you. And no they would never have found them. The Navy was blessed for a few decades because they had dad and then they had you. You two were irreplaceable. The things you and dad did . . . well, let’s just say it takes a certain kind of person, a gifted person to have achieved so much. This country owes you big time.”

“Flatterer.”

“Just telling it like it is.”

He stood in front of the graves, silently saying hello again to daddy and Danno. At first, it bothered her how Eddie was so casual about her attitude when she visited her dads graves. After a while, it became evident how he used humor to alleviate his own pain. Danno would have done the same thing.

“We should get going. Everyone will worry if we don’t. What are the others up to?” Stevie asked.

“They are currently in a food coma. Alyssa goes overboard after we come home from visiting pop and Danno. You know her,” Eddie responded with a small smile as he talked about his wife.

“I bet they are. Yours are probably passed out on the living room floor nursing a Peptol Bismol bottle,” Stevie said with a chuckle as they made their way to Eddie’s car. She took a last glance at daddy and Danno before she got into her brother’s truck to head home.

“They are always watching over us. Never could stay away. Before I got here I could have sworn I heard pop telling Jason to take it easy on the meatballs as we were eating in the kitchen. I started laughing, so Alyssa looked at me like I had finally gone off the deep end,” Eddie said as he made his way out into the highway.

“You would hear daddy. I would have heard Danno telling Kresley to eat more since she always looks skinny to him. Then I would have said it was the growth spurt and that she already ate enough as it is,” Stevie responded. The twins laughed together as they recalled their dads’ crazy verbal commentary. This was always their thing after visiting their parents. Laughing and remembering at what they would have said, yelled, argued or possibly shot at because this kept them alive for the twins as well as for their children. Eddie took Stevie’s hand in his and squeezed it tightly while settling into a comfortable silence as each immersed themselves in their own memories.

_**H50H50H50H050H50H500H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50** _

Stevie got home to a chorus of hellos and a massive wave of hugs.

Alyssa was the last to do so and said, “Hey sis. Everyone was waiting for you. They want to hear your infamous origin stories.”

“They always do. Let’s round them up so I can get started. I feel very inspired today.”

Alyssa smiled at her and complied. After Stevie and Alyssa had everyone settled in the living room with cake in their hands (everyone always had to be eating something during her stories for some reason) Stevie took votes as to what stories they wanted to hear.

“Aunt Stevie I want to hear the wedding story!”

“We heard that last week, let’s listen to a different one. Mom lets listen to you and uncle Eddie’s first Christmas!”

“How about we listen to the one about you and Eddie’s birth?” Stevie looked up at her husband as well as everyone else.

He continued, “You’ve never told that one. Or the one about when we met, or when Steve and Danny got married, or . . .”

“You know what, now that you’ve mentioned it, I have never told the most exciting ones. I’ve even avoided the sad ones too, like when Daddy got run over or deployed for the first time since we were born,” Stevie said to everyone.

Jackson gave her a smile and a wink.

“You mind if I choose today what I tell?” she asked.

“Of course not mom. If you promise to tell all the juicy stories.”

“I promise sweetheart. All the ones that I keep to myself I’ll tell today. In honor of daddy and Danno.” There were cheers and clapping, so Stevie knew everyone agreed with her decision.

“Alrighty kids. I will start with the day me and Eddie boy were born. . . .”


	2. Stevie and Eddie Are Born

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve and Danny welcome their twins!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi All, 
> 
> Thanks so much for the continued support! Mahalo and Enjoy!

“Steven! You keep this up and we will die before we ever get the chance to meet the twins!” Danny shouted at his husband as they sped down the highway towards the hospital.

“Danny, she could have the babies any minute and we will miss their birth if we do not break a few traffic laws. Besides I have the lights on. People will move out of the way and make it easier,” Steve replied as he continued to put the pedal to the metal.

“Why is it that you sound so rational when you say the most insane things,” Danny said under his breath as he held on for dear life.

Danny knew that this was more than just missing their twins being born. Steve was nervous as hell. When they decided to have a baby together, the decision was made rationally. They knew they could provide for the babies, Gracie was thrilled to have more siblings, the governor agreed to give them as much time off as possible to be with their family, and so on so forth.

Even the decision that Steve would be the biological father came with logic. Danny already had a daughter, so why wouldn’t Steve get the chance to have biological children? It was a choice that came with a few arguments, but Danny let Steve know this was not a sacrifice. The baby may have Steve’s DNA, but they would be Danny’s too in all they ways that counted and nothing could change that. It also didn’t hurt that the make-up sex for these arguments was out of this world. Steve came to his senses afterward.

However once Annie, the surrogate, got pregnant and the doctor said she was carrying twins, Steve had a full blown panic attack. The normally stoic and held-together Navy SEAL broke down in their living room. At first Danny thought it was the stress of their jobs mixed with the blindsiding surprise that they were to have twins, but as Steve started to calm down an hour later, Danny deduced that his husband was afraid that he would not be able to be a father to one let alone two kids at the same time. Danny had experience with this because he was already father to Grace, although he still felt a measure of insecurity going through the motions again with newborn babies. However, his nerves were nothing compared to what Steve was feeling.

As the months went by, Steve mellowed out. He got used to the idea of being a dad and that it was his fault that he and Danny were having twins. Danny would always tease him of his Navy SEAL sperm showing off with conceiving not one, but two babies. Steve would grace him with a mean stare, but would break off into a smile that Danny was sure would break his face one day. These days, all they knew was joy. Danny was blissfully happy with the prospect of having kids with Steve and Steve was glad he would have what he had been missing out on since he was a teen: a real, honest to goodness, Ohana.

Now if only they could get to the hospital in one piece.

They arrived at the nick of time. Annie was already sufficiently dilated and was taken to where the twins would finally make their appearance. Kono, Chin, Kamekona, Max, Mary and Joan, Joe White, Doris and the rest of their friends were notified and were anxiously sitting in the waiting room, ready to greet the new Williams-McGarretts.

 

H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50

 

Stevie Danielle Williams-McGarrett came into the world at exactly 3:00 PM and her brother Edward Henry Williams-McGarrett at 3:03 PM.

As Steve gazed at his daughter and son in their respective cribs in their private suite, he thought his heart would explode with the immense amount of happiness that it contained. If he would have been told that he would marry his partner and have twins a few years before, he would have laughed his ass off and told him or her that they were certifiably crazy. Though, here he was. Married to the most amazing guy on the planet that he loved with all his heart and with twin newborns.

Damn, his genes really were strong. Stevie and Eddie were the spitting image of him. Although he had to say that his baby girl had a certain gleam in her eye that was all McGarrett. Danny was able to see this too as she opened her eyes for the first time. Eddie had a more subtle and quiet look, almost as if he were surveying his surroundings, much like Steve did when situated in unfamiliar territory. Stevie was more like a take no prisoners type of personality with a cry that Steve was sure was heard in the whole hospital. If they were going to make her cry, she would cry damn it all and she would hit you with her best shot. Steve felt all kinds of proud with his babies. Yeah, they were his alright.

Danny took the job of naming them. Since Stevie was the most like Steve, she was named Stevie Danielle. Steve added the Danielle part because why would he hog his babies with only being named after him? They were Williams’ as well. Danny named his son Edward Henry because for one, Edward was his father’s name and second, Henry was a name he always liked and swore that if he ever had a son, that this would be his name. Steve liked it a lot too. It was a good strong name and it fit his son perfectly.

The rest of the gang just about swooned over them which made both Steve and Danny puff up their chests with even more pride. After Steve and Danny fed their babies, the whole team was able to hold them. Some more awkwardly than others. More specifically Max, but after Kono set him straight, Max looked sweet holding Eddie. A million pictures were taken and a bunch of congratulations were given. Joe even commented about the McGarrett gleam in Stevie’s eyes and declared that Stevie was going to be a SEAL, just like her father, so gender norms be damned. Both Danny and Steve laughed at that, but Steve knew his husband better than anyone. Danny seemed to give off a bit of anxiety at the surety in Joe White’s voice. He already had to deal with one SEAL, what would happen if Danny had to deal with his husband and daughter in the SEALs? For the first time, Steve understood what fathers, husbands, mothers and wives felt when their spouses and children went off to war. He looked at his daughter sleeping peacefully in Joe’s arms and felt the same anxiety creep into his system, but unlike Danny, suppressed it. He would cross that bridge when he came to it.

 

H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50H50

 

The sun was finally setting on this most glorious day and Steve did not want it to end. Danny was finally able to get some shut eye after the many failed attempts on Steve’s part to persuade him to finally grab a pillow and blanket to count some sheep. Danny wanted to enjoy every single minute of his time with his daughter and son, but both men had put in an all nighter due to the high profile drug cartel case they were on. They had just shut their eyes when they got the call from HPD of an anonymous tip of where the drug cartel was staying before they left the island. Steve, Danny and the rest of 5-0 got there just before everyone was supposed to haul ass. After a gruesome shootout, Danny crashing a car into the warehouse, Kono taking out five perps with her sniper rifle, two idiots that got on Chin’s bad side and Steve jumping into the ocean to arrest three others dumbasses, Danny got the call that the twins were ready to meet their kickass parents.

Thankfully, the Camaro was not damaged in the shootout and as soon as Steve was on dry land, they raced to the hospital.

“What is going on in that crazy mind of yours McGarrett?” Danny said sleepily. “I can practically hear you thinking.”

“You can’t hear anyone think Danno. But since I know what you meant, I’m just replaying the day’s events. And how generous Stevie and Eddie were about waiting until we caught the drug cartel to let us know they were coming,” Steve answered.

Danny got up from his place on the sofa and stretched. He walked toward Steve and stood next to him in the place he had taken in front of the windows. Stevie and Eddie were in their new cribs next to him. Danny smiled at that. Leave it to Steve to never, ever leave his kids out of his sight.

_He’s only been a dad for a few hours and he is already being overprotective_ , Danny thought with fondness.

Steve put his arm around Danny as they stood quietly watching the sun set, reveling in their roles as new parents. Danny had already enjoyed his first time parent glow before, but now he is enjoying his first time father glow to Steve’s children. This moment was utter perfection.

“Remind me to write a very heartfelt thank you letter to the governor for scoring us this hospital suite. Couches are not meant to be slept on, but that thing felt like I was sleeping on clouds.”

“I’ll remind you. It’s nice how we have our privacy. We can enjoy our kids alone without anyone walking in and out all the time.”

“Yup. How long have I been out?”

“A couple of hours. You should go back to sleep, you know I can stay up for longer periods of time.”

“I know, superman, but we have been up all night. Let me look after them for a while so you can sleep. They are not going anywhere you know.”

“I know, its just. . . .”

“Believe me, you do not have to explain yourself. I get it, but still my experience as a father has taught me that babies are more durable than you think. They are fine, Steven. They are your kids after all.”

Steve laughed at that. “Danny about what Joe said. . .”

“We will cross that bridge when we come to it.”

“That is exactly what I was thinking.”

“Great minds think alike.”

“Very true.” Almost as if his body knew that it could rest now that Danny was up, Steve gave a great big yawn.

“Go to sleep you goof, you need the rest.”

“Alright, I’m going. Let me know if anything happens. Wake me up when they need to be fed so I can help. Oh and if the doctor comes in. . .”

“Geez, Steven you will be promptly notified. Now go to sleep,” Danny practically had to push him to his former place on the sofa.

Steve sighed. “Sorry, I. . .”

“You’re a new dad, Steve. To be honest you’re kinda sexy when you do that.”

Steve was rubbing his tired eyes, “Do what?”

“Be all protective of your kids, even the worrying part. It’s a look I never would have thought you would have, but now that I see it, you have all the makings of a great dad. And that, my husband, is extremely sexy.”

“I had a good example. You are a sexy dad yourself,” Steve laughed and Danny could see a lustful gleam in his eye.

“You are such an animal,” Danny said as he playfully punched Steve in the arm. Steve in a lightning quick move grabbed his arm before it hit its mark and planted a nice big wet one on his lips. Danny moaned a little, but quickly checked himself. His kids were sleeping, but still. These were the types of kisses that let Danny know all the love that Steve could not put into words. These were the moments that Danny lived for and now that the twins were here, the circle was now complete. They broke the kiss and were short of breath.

Steve grabbed Danny once more, this time for a hug and a peck on his forehead.

“I am so in love with you, Daniel Williams-McGarrett. I just hope you know how much.”

“I do. I am in love with you too you crazy SEAL.”

Danny let go of his husband so that he could rest. He was out like a light as soon as he closed his eyes. Danny could not help but chuckle. His SEAL was like the Energizer bunny sometimes, but he was still human and it was Danny’s job to remind him of that.

He looked at his kids in their cribs and said out loud, “I am the luckiest man in the universe.”

Unbeknowst to him, Steve was able to hear his husband’s quiet statement and with a smile and the faces of his babies and his husband lulling him, the fierce warrior McGarrett fell asleep.

 

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_1 Month Later_

 

“Babe, its your turn,” Danny said as he heard Stevie crying in her room. When he did not feel the bed shift to signal Steve had heard him, Danny turned and saw that he was not there.

“Steve?”

“Go back to sleep,” Danny heard Steve say from across the hall.

“Damn ninja skills,” Danny muttered as he went back to sleep.

Or at the very least tried to. It seemed as though as soon as Steve put Stevie down, she would wake up again and start crying like her life depended on it. However, this was not what was astounding, but Eddie’s ability to sleep through it all. Everyone they knew who had kids, said that Eddie was a miracle baby because it was almost impossible to think that a month old baby could sleep that much especially if his twin sister was hollering right next to him. Danny and Steve decided to be thankful and not expect it to last that long, so they decided to enjoy while it lasted. At first, they were worried that Stevie’s fussiness would keep Eddie up as well, but it turned out the month old baby could withstand his sister’s cries and sleep through the night. Even though he slept peacefully, Steve and Danny decided to have Eddie sleep in their bedroom, just in case he did wake up.

Danny looked at his bedside clock and saw that it was 3:30 AM.

“Well, so much for getting my beauty sleep.” Despite his tiredness, Danny managed to chuckle at himself a little. He was sort of used to this because Gracie spent ten months without sleeping through the night after she was born, but he knew this time would be different because he had twins. So, he sat up and discovered that Eddie’s portable crib was next to his side of the bed. Steve must have set it here sometime while Danny was asleep. The question that needed to be asked though was why he did it, but before he could, he checked on his son. Little Eddie was sound asleep.

“My precious son. Your sister is most definitely the noise maker. She has a set of lungs that one,” Danny whispered to his son.

He kissed his little forehead and left the room to check on said noise maker. Danny found Steve with Stevie on his chest, gently swaying on the rocking chair that Rachel and Stan had given them. Steve’s eyes were closed, but he knew better than to think he was asleep.

“I got it covered Danno, go back to bed. One of us needs to be fully awake to make breakfast in the morning,” Steve said.

_See what I mean?_

“Let me take her for a little, babe, you’ve been at this all night. Eddie does not seem to be waking up any time soon, so take advantage of that. Get some rest,” Danny responded walking closer to Steve and Stevie.

Steve opened his eyes and looked at his husband.

“No, it’s okay. I got it. Plus, I just got her to settle down for longer than ten minutes, so if I move now, she’ll just wake up again.”

Danny looked at his sleep-deprived Navy SEAL with their daughter on his chest. The dark circles under his eyes were pronounced, even by the glow of the night light. His head had definitely more gray hair since before the twins were born and he seemed to be losing weight. This was all because Steve refused Danny’s help with Stevie, instead making him focus on Eddie and his needs. The one thing that stopped Danny from seriously arguing with Steve over the issue was the goofy grin that Steve would sport every time he looked at his kids. The man was just so _happy_. Danny looked just as haggard as Steve, but it seemed that the more Steve lost sleep, the happier he was. It was as if dealing with a fussy daughter was his equivalent of Nirvana.

“What are you smiling at Danno?”

“You.”

“Me? What did I do?”

“Some parents would be begging their kids to fall asleep. Others would bring in a night nanny. Hell, I knew this guy who seriously thought about returning his kid to the hospital because he was “sucking the life out of him.” His words, not mine. And yet here you are. With a big smile on your face every morning. I am seriously in awe of you babe. Being a dad has really grown on you.”

Steve returned his smile.

“I guess having kids is a better experience than I ever thought possible.”

“Or maybe Stevie has you wrapped around her tiny finger.”

“Maybe. Either way there is no place I would rather be than here with my daughter on this rocking chair. If Eddie were the fussy one, I would be planted in this chair just the same.”

Danny had kneeled down beside Steve as he was talking, gently smoothing Stevie’s thick patch of hair back.

“Geez, she has a lot of hair for a baby. Gracie was practically bald at this age.”

“My genes are quite astounding Danno. You should have figured this out by now,” Steve replied with a smile.

“Shut up and kiss me, you jerk, before I hurt you,” Danno said.

Steve turned his head and Danno leaned in for a short passionate kiss. Stevie stirred on Steve’s chest and gave a small contended sigh.

“Did you hear that?”

“Yeah, I heard it. Can babies do that?”

“No idea. Maybe it’s the sleep deprivation making us hear things?”

“Maybe.”

Danny gave Stevie a kiss and then another to Steve on his head.

“Babe, last chance, you sure you do not want me to take Stevie for a little while?”

“I’m sure. I’ll see you in a few hours.”

“Alright, aquaman.”

Danno left silently back to their room. Once he checked on Eddie, he got under the covers and was out in minutes.

 

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After Danny left, Stevie stared down at his little girl on his chest. Giving thanks for what was probably the millionth time. He considered himself a lucky man. So many things had gone wrong in his life that he had been resigned to leading a life of solitude. When Danny came into his life, he knew that the life he once led would be no more.

As Steve rocked in his chair, he thought about what he had purposefully chosen not to tell Danny, at least for the time being.

These moments, as Steve tried to calm down a crying Stevie and rock her to sleep, were actually selfish moments.

It was not that he did not love Eddie or that he wanted to hog her from Danny, but that he felt a connection to his baby girl that was very different from the one that he had with his son and his husband. It was as if he knew what Stevie wanted and needed at all times without really trying to figure it out like most new parents seemed to do with their newborns. Steve knew this sounded crazy, but it was as if he and his daughter were of the same mind. On some level, Danny knew this was true because as soon as Stevie opened her eyes, he had seen the strong resemblance between them not to mention both of them had gotten to know her very well over the past four weeks. It seemed their twins had very strong personalities and although Eddie was the “silent” type, he was prone to cry just as hard as Stevie when he wanted something. It just so happened that he was a bit more patient than his sister before going nuclear.

Steve knew his son shared some of his characteristics because, after all, he was _his father’s son_ , but he was not as “outspoken” about it as Stevie.

“Your father has his hands full with all three of us Stevie,” Steve whispered to his sleeping daughter as he kissed her small head.

Also, Steve would be teased mercilessly all the time by his parents before his mother “died” and was shipped off to the main land that he was so difficult to put to sleep and figure out what he wanted. His moods would change from one minute to the next that his mom had “baby whiplash,” so Steve did not mind paying penance for all the trouble he may have caused for his parents. Even though he was teased, his parents never seemed to be actually complaining. It was all in just good fun.

When Steve held his son and daughter in his arms, he would try to imagine what his parents felt , and even Danny for that matter, holding such precious cargo, something that you were responsible for helping bring into this world. As a Navy SEAL, his actions protected millions, but he would do so by less nurturing means. Right now, he was protecting his offspring by making sure they were fed, changed, burped and bathed. The whole house was baby proofed and the security system updated. All the twins’ bottles were promptly washed and dried for the next meal, emergency numbers were written beside the landline, etc. He and Danny kept a baby book for crying out loud!

Meticulous records were kept by them, but mostly Steve because he was just so OCD like that as Danny would so often put it, about any milestone their kids met. He would probably never get the chance to be a dad again, so he wanted to do this right. His kids would never have to _want_ anything because they would have it all.

After all the violence, all the fights and covert ops mission, death defying feats and so on,

this right here, this moment with his daughter and the ones he would have with his son, was his most dangerous and rewarding mission he would ever have. He was the best the Navy had seen, and now he would try his best at being the best father the world has ever seen. Steve took his missions seriously, this one was no different. There was also a much more personal stake for him in this particular one because it was not only his country he was fighting for anymore, it was his family. His heart and soul were not only a vital organ and intangible respectively, they were very much a part of who he was. A very alive and passionate part of him. If he lost that, his life was just not worth living.

He looked down at Stevie sleeping peacefully, “You, your brother and your father have all of me. All that I am and all that I could be, everything that I was or could never be, will always be for your benefit. I was alone before Stevie and I never want to be alone again. Make me be in the here and now because your daddy has the tendency to forget that he is not just a Navy SEAL anymore. Be patient with me and make me see the world through your eyes so that I can understand that life is not black and white and that that is a good thing. There is more to life than chasing down criminals. You, sweetheart, and my two best men are proof of that.”

With that, Steve fell into a peaceful slumber with his daughter which is how Danny found them later.


	3. Meet the Wards

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stevie and Eddie meet their new neighbors, the Wards. Recently moved from the main land, the Ward matriarch and her twins are looking for a fresh start. What starts out as a funny coincidence, becomes a promise of love and friendship built for the ages. The beginning of the adventure for four soulmates.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi All, 
> 
> Thanks for the continued support! Here is the newest chapter in my series and I really hope you enjoy it. It is one of my favorites! 
> 
> Mahalo!

“Pop, Danno, we’ve finally met the new neighbors!” Stevie yelled as she ran into the house after school. Eddie walked in behind her with grocery bags from their shopping trip with Pop, not getting why his sister was so excited over new neighbors.

The twins found Danno in the kitchen getting their afternoon snacks ready before starting dinner. Pop was getting the rest of the bags out of the car.

"What’s with all the yelling Stevie? What new neighbors?” Danno asked.

“The ones that moved in last month! Me and Eddie saw them in school today and guess what? They’re twins too!” Stevie said excitedly.

“The reason why she is so excited Danno is because she thinks Jackson is hot.”

“Like you don’t think Alyssa is hot? I saw the way you were looking at her.”

“I was not looking at her in any special way. I was curious. Just. Like. You.”

“I am your twin dumbbell and I know that you’re into her. I wonder if Jackson has a girlfriend?”

“Why would he? He just moved here.”

“Yeah but how do you know he did not leave someone behind?”

“With the way he was checking you out in English class, I am sure he doesn’t. Not unless he likes to date multiple women.”

“He is not a. . .  wait. .  what did you say?”

“Alright you two cut it out and put your backpacks in your rooms so that you can eat your snacks,” Steve said as he walked into the kitchen.

“And Eddie, do not tease your sister.”

They both ran up the stairs and did as they were told.

“What was that all about?” Danno said.

“It’s a long story that Stevie will probably tell you all about during dinner. If I tell you now, she’ll hate me because I stole her thunder.”

“Ah, babe,” Danno said as he gave a welcome home kiss to his husband.

“Is Gracie coming in this weekend?” Steve asked changing the subject.

“No, she called to say that Mark is tangled up in some business abroad and would not be able to make it. She thinks that she will be here for Thanksgiving though,” Danno replied as he started putting the groceries away, leaving out only what he needed for dinner.

“That’s too bad, the twins will be disappointed,” Steve remarked.

“They will, but I am sure that Gracie will be here next month and December for the holidays. She loves us and can’t stay away for long. That should cheer them up.”

“You are right. What’s for dinner?”

“Yours and Stevie’s favorite. Herb roasted chicken with vegetables.”

Steve looked adoringly at his husband. “Danno, I love you.”

“Danno loves you too.” Steve went in for another kiss when the twins walked in.

“Aghhh my eyes, my eyes!” Stevie yelled.

“Where’s the eye solution!” Eddie followed.

“Quit it you two and sit down and eat,” Steve said with a semi-serious frown. Danno laughed instead. Their kids were quite the clowns.

 

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_As the dutiful children of two members of Hawaii’s elite task force, the Commander and his second in command, after their snacks were eaten, they went upstairs and started on their homework before dinner rolled around._

_However, the children were not children anymore, but teenagers in their Junior year of high school. While both were rocking 4.0 GPA’s, tonight their mind was not on the homework in front of them that they could easily do, but on another pair of teenagers that had gently but firmly wedged themselves into both their hearts._

_A similar reaction was going through the Ward twins as they did their homework._

_All four teenagers may not know it now, but soon they will discover that during their 6 th period English class, they found and fell in love with their soul mates._

_Both sets of twins in their respective households rubbed the spot above their heart. This was the beginning of forever for them._

 

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“. . . . And Danno when I found out they were twins, I thought this was just meant to be! Jackson is so totally mine and Alyssa is Eddie’s.”

“Danno please tell her to zip it. She has been driving me insane all day.”

“Son, let your sister have her way. No one can make you zip it when the Guns and Ammo magazine gets here every month,” Danno said with a smile.

Eddie turned bright red and Stevie giggled.

“Take that buzzkill,” Stevie said triumphantly.

“No fair Danno that was a low blow!”

“All is fair in love and war, son. You better believe it,” Steve said.

“Whatever.” Eddie replied as he put the last piece of his chicken into his mouth.

“Alright little brother I’ll shut up, but first you need to tell Pop and Danno what you got in that big Physics test today.”

“A+ baby, hah. Take that Ernie, you cocky bastard,” Eddie said.

“Eddie!” Danno said surprised. “Language mister.”

“Sorry Danno, you know he loves to seize me up. Thinks he is the better man just because he is the son of the wealthiest guy on the island.”

“And what did he get, Eddie?” Steve asked.

“An A-.”

“Well, all I can say is how proud me and Danno are of you. Both of you. Loudness and foul language included.”

Danno sighed. “You are all animals.” All three Williams-McGarretts laughed at their poor put upon father. They knew they were loved.

“Danno is there any more chicken left?”

“Yeah, sweetie, take as much as you want.”

“Geez sister, where do you put it all?”

“Woman’s secret. Men not allowed to know.”

“Obviously.”

Stevie slapped him upside the head.

“Why is it that she gets away with everything?”

Steve decided to answer, “Only woman in the house. Plus she argues like the best of them and we will never hear the end of it. Danno I blame you.”

“Me? Please. Eddie, the only sane one besides me in this house, takes after me, don’t you son?”

“Sure do. I got your back Danno.”

“Yeah, yeah,” father and daughter said as they rolled their eyes.

“So tell us more about these kids, Stevie” Pop said.

“Well, they moved here with their mom from California because their parents got divorced. He remarried and moved to Maine. Their mom is an ER doctor and was able to get a transfer here. According to Aly, she wanted to get as far away as possible. Jackson has been the most affected by it all because he was really close with his dad. Aly says that her mom suspects their dad was cheating on her. All the more reason to just get away.”

“That must be tough,” Steve said.

“Major bummer I know. Aly is on her mom’s side, but Jackson thinks his father is innocent even when their dad remarried almost as soon as their mom signed the divorce papers. Turns out his new lady love was six months pregnant. She was already pregnant before they got married. Jackson refuses to admit that his mom may be right in her suspicions.”

“You got all this from a half hour lunch with Alyssa?”

“I have a way of getting people to confess what lies deep in their souls.”

“That’s my girl!” Steve said proudly.

Now it was time for Danno and Eddie to roll their eyes.

“Well, you two need to make them feel as welcome as you can. They have led a tough few months, so be nice,” Danno said.

“I am. Eddie refuses to talk to Alyssa, but got along nicely with Jackson during football practice.”

“It is not that I am refusing to talk to her. I just do not want to gang up on her like you are. Jackson and I are guys, so it’s different with us.”

“Please, Alyssa is awesome like that. She is a good judge of character I can tell.”

“Not so good if she is spilling her guts to you.”

“Respect your elders smartass. Imma get you for that one Eddie boy, just you wait.”

“Guys, take it down a notch will you?” Steve said.

“Sorry,” the twins apologized at the same time.

“Anyways, is it okay if I invite them and their mom for dinner some time?”

“Sure,” Steve and Danno said at the same time.

“Pure awesomness! Thanks you guys rock.”

The rest of dinner was spent in easy chatter among the Williams-McGarretts.

 

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The doorbell rang at exactly 6:00 PM on a warm Friday afternoon.

“I’ll get it!” Stevie yelled, loud enough for everyone in the house to hear.

Stevie ran down the stairs and opened the door to greet her guests.

“Hey guys! Mrs. Ward, pleasure to meet you. Please come in,” Stevie said politely, ushering them in. She hugged Aly and shook Jackson and Mrs. Ward’s hands.

While this was going on Steve, Danny and Eddie made their way into the living room.

“Ms. Ward, these are our dads Lt. Commander Steve Williams-McGarrett and Detective Daniel Williams-McGarrett. Daddy, Danno this is Aly and Jack’s mom Dr. Linda Ward,” Stevie introduced.

Steve shook her hand first, “Dr. Ward it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“Please call me Linda,” she said as she shook his hand and then Danny’s. “In the short time I’ve known your kids, I’ve heard a lot about you both. It’s an honor to meet you.”

“Likewise. You have great children Linda. Good head on both their shoulders,” Danny responded.

“Thank you detective. I brought some apple pie for dessert, I hope you do not mind,” Linda said offering the pie to Danny.

“Of course not and please call us Danny and Steve. I’ve heard from Aly how great your apple pie is. We cannot wait to try some,” Danny replied.

“Let’s head into the dining room. Dinner is ready, hope you guys brought your appetites,” Steve said.

“I live here and I know I brought mine,” Stevie piped up.

“Geez sister, you are always hungry,” Eddie teased.

Aly laughed and Eddie blushed a little. Jack just gave Stevie a half smile. Linda looked at the energy crackling between all four teenagers. Their reactions were so ordinary and yet it felt like they were speaking some unknown language privy only to them.

As they headed into the dining room, Linda noticed how Jack walked behind Stevie. It looked like he was hovering over her, protecting her from some unknown threat. A bodyguard at the ready at all times with a hand on her lower back that never left until Stevie was sitting down. He had had girlfriends before, but he had never acted with them like he was acting with Stevie. He even pulled out her chair for her! That never happened, not even with his sister and mother.

Aly was acting differently too. Laughing at Eddie’s every joke and merciless teasing of his sister. He would look at her with fondness and affection. She would occasionally touch his hand or smooth his hair back. It baffled Linda that she, and Jack for that matter, would be so bold with all three parents present! Aly never was much for PDA, but her gestures looked so natural that it was as if they were habitual, a common occurrence.

Linda noticed that Steve and Danny were watching them as well and feared that they may not share her curiosity but instead be offended by it. The last thing her small family needed was trouble with neighbors so soon after they had moved. If they were, they did not show it because they never called attention to it. Maybe they had already seen all this? Did they accept their behavior? Linda was still at the baffled stage, so she was not sure whether she should be worried about this behavior in her children. After all, they had only known each other for a short time and the way they were acting, it seemed like they had dated for years and that a sort of commitment was already established. Yes, the jury was definitely still out.

 

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Despite the turmoil that may or may not be going on in the heads of the present parentals, dinner was a success and the apple pie was gone before anyone could blink. Linda received an immense amount of praise for her dessert and she promised to bake another when they came over to her house for dinner.

“Guys, let’s go watch the sunset! We have the best view in all of Oahu!” Stevie announced to the group.

She took Jack’s hand and motioned for everyone to join her. Aly and Eddie trailed behind with Linda, Danny and Steve as well.

The three parents stood just on the edge of where the sand met the Williams-McGarrett’s backyard. All four twins raced each other to the water’s edge and proceeded to have a water fight before the sun set completely. When the sun was nearing the horizon, Stevie made everyone stop and admire the great big ball of gas go down.

Steve, Danny and Linda were sitting on chairs, preferring them over the sand that their kids opted for.

After a few minutes of comfortable silence, Steve broke it by saying, “We know what you are thinking, but we wouldn’t worry if we were you. They are great kids with level heads and although what they have is intense for their age with the amount of time they have known each other, believe us when we say it is innocent and pure,” Steve told an awestruck Linda.

“How did you know I was worried?” Linda asked after she found her voice.

“We are pretty good at reading people as we should be in our line of work. We were taken by surprise as well and under any other circumstances would not have allowed our kids to be so blatant with their affections. But because we are so good at reading people, we know that your kids are honest and have a good heart and we know our kids as well. So, all the PDA and over protectiveness you just saw, comes from a good place. Although we can tell ours to cool it if you believe it’s inappropriate,” Danny said.

Linda looked out at where her kids were sitting by the ocean. Eddie and Aly were sitting side by side and from where she sat, you would think they were doing just that, but Linda knew their hands were linked. Jack had Stevie in front of him with one leg on each side of her. Stevie was leaning into him and he had his arms wrapped around her waist.

“No, that won’t be necessary,” Linda finally answered.

She took a deep breath and divulged information that she had not been able to tell another since her divorce.

Linda looked at both men seated at either side of her. Maybe it was the sincerity in their voice, maybe it was because they were cops, maybe it was because they seemed to love their own children as much she loved hers. Whatever the reason, she decided to tell them what was on her mind.

“The divorce was hard on all of us. Aly was more vocal about it and supported my decisions, even the one about moving all the way over here. Jackson took it much worse. He was close to his father and when he found out that he may have committed certain indiscretions, it nearly tore him apart. My son has not been able to look me in the eye since we set foot on this island. Aly keeps telling me that he is doing better, but that does not convince me. He hardly talks to me and when he does, he is so distant.”

Linda took another breath.

“Linda, you do not have to tell us anything if you do want to. It’s okay,” Steve offered, sensing the woman’s deep distress.

“No, I have to. You need to know that I am okay with all of this. Now that I really see our children interacting, it is for the best. I may have had my doubts before, but I see that you are both right. My daughter and son need this. They need to make healthy connections and create meaningful relationships. I can only do so much and my job requires me to be at the hospital for long hours at a time, so the fact that our children have met, puts my mind at ease. Their father has not bothered to talk to them in weeks so if they can find some relief from the pain he has caused, I am the last person to oppose such relief. I think this is the first time I have seen Jackson smile in months and the first time Aly has been truly happy. Your children are to thank for that,” Linda finished.

All three of them sat in silence for a while as the sun went down over the horizon.

“Your kids are strong Linda. They will get through this and if you ever need anything, please do not hesitate to let us know. You and your kids are always welcome in our house,” Steve said.

“We mean it Linda, we are here for you,” Danny added.

Linda wanted to cry so badly at this display of generosity and kindness, but she kept her tears at bay, so all she said was, “Thank you. That means a lot.”

Soon, both sets of twins raced back to the house and said their goodbyes for the night. All four teenagers made plans to meet up tomorrow at the mall to catch a movie with their parents permission. Goodnights were exchanged and then the Wards were on their way.

“That was fun, we should do that more often,” Stevie announced as she headed up the stairs.

“I agree,” Eddie said.

“Yes it was and yes we should do it more often,” Steve said. Danny nodded his agreement as he headed into the kitchen to clean up with Steve trailing behind him.

Once the kitchen was spotless, both men headed to their bedroom. It was no longer necessary given that their kids were in high school, but they still had the habit of checking in on Stevie and Eddie before they went to bed themselves.

Stevie was sound asleep with half her duvet and sheets to the side of her bed and her foot sticking out. Steve headed inside and fixed them for her, but not without Stevie shifting in her bed. As Steve did this, Danny made his way into Eddie’s room and saw that all his blankets were perfectly covering his son with his head the only thing peeking out. Steve and Danny always wondered how he can sleep so “neat” while his sister slept all over the place. Twins, but polar opposites.

“He out?” Steve asked.

“Like a light and without a hair out of place,” Danny responded.

“Takes it from his old man,” Steve said proudly.

“Do not make me laugh you crazy SEAL, you sleep like you’ve had a couple rounds with Chuck Liddell. I’ve even received a couple of punches,” Danny said as he undressed in their room.

“Funny that is not how I see it. Usually when our bed looks like a hurricane hit it, it is because we were making some serious fireworks with some serious earth shattering se—“

Steve did not finish his sentence because his head collided with a pillow.

“Hey, what was that for?” Steve accused.

“For contradicting me,” Danny answered as he made his way to the bathroom to brush his teeth.

“You seem to like what we do on this bed if I remember correctly,” Steve grumbled as he started brushing his own teeth.

Both men finished and jumped under the covers. Danny turned away from Steve.

“What no goodnight kiss?” Steve asked.

“Nah, I’m not in the mood tonight,” Danno replied.

“Not in the mood?” Steve said. He turned Danny and straddled him.

“What the hell are you doing sailor?”

“Making you kiss me, haole, that’s what,” and Steve went in for the kill. He did not stop until he had elicited a moan from Danny and left him wanting more.

“How about you show me the fireworks again, babe, and remind me so that I do not forget again.”

Steve was already ahead of him. He stripped off his own shirt and discarded his own pants before stripping Danny of his. After, he gave Danny another soul-satisfying kiss and before coming up for air said, “Your ass is mine tonight detective.”

Danny looked up at Steve and saw the beauty of a man in front of him. A strong, capable, toned body that was all his for the taking. Danny cupped his SEAL’s ass and was successful in making Steve let out a tiny hiss because he knew what was to come.

“It always has been you Neanderthal. Now stop talking and start working.”

Steve smiled and proceeded to do just that.

Down the hall, two siblings gave out an exasperated and put upon sigh in their sleep.

And everything was right in the world.

 


	4. From Out Of the Past

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One of Danny's old New Jersey cases comes back to haunt him and his family. . .

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, mahalo for all the support! You guys rock! Here is the latest chapter, a little late, but finally posted!

“This is not good,” Danno said when he looked out his office window into Steve’s. Kono had been going over some details about their latest case with him and turned in the direction Danny’s head had turned. The boss man was clutching the handset very tightly and his brow was furrowed. From what she could tell, and Danny also, Steve’s words were short and clipped. To put it simply, the leader of Five-0 did not like what he was hearing.

 

“I think he is talking to the governor,” Kono responded.

 

Danny sighed, “Well I am going to hear about it in three, two, one. . .” Steve hung up the phone a little too roughly and made his way toward his husband’s office.

 

“And that is my cue to leave. I’ll go over the evidence with Chin again, maybe we missed something,” Kono said as she gathered the evidence folders.

 

“Yeah, you do that while I calm the raging bull,” Danno replied as Steve burst into his office. Steve nodded to Kono as she exited and Steve closed the door behind her.

 

“Denning is making us do some more PR. And this time it involves some stupid game show,”

Steve announced.

 

Daniel looked at his husband of five years and saw the tremendous strain he was in. Not only was their current case getting them nowhere, but Governor Denning has decided to drop this bomb on them as well.

 

“What did you say?”

 

“Well I wanted to say that he should shove all this PR crap up his. . .”

 

“Steve!” Danno almost yelled.

 

“Right. As politely as I could, I told him that I would talk to him in person once this case was closed. That now was not the best time to plan on doing such extracurricular activities. He understood and said he would be expecting me. I could tell that if I were to blow him off, he would personally do a house call,” Steve said unhappily. By now he was sitting on Danny’s desk chair looking very much disgruntled. He rubbed his eyes, as he was prone to do under duress, and stood up to go back into his office, but thought better of it.

 

“You mind if I just take a nap on your sofa until it’s time to pick up the kids,” Steve asked his husband.

 

Danno did not hesitate when he said, “Go ahead, I’ll wake you up. And about this PR business. . .”

 

Steve turned to him expectantly.

 

“Let me handle it.”

 

“You sure about this?”

 

“Yes. I’m more of a people person. You may just make things worse with Denning. I’ll call him later to set up an appointment.”

 

“But what if he wants me there too?”

 

“I’ll come up with something. In the meantime, sleep. It’s almost 12:00 PM and you are supposed to be at the preschool at 12:30 PM.”

 

Steve nodded and proceeded to drop his huge frame in Danno’s oh so comfy couch. His husband loved to take naps in his office. Something about Danno typing, writing, and even talking on the phone that would lull the Navy SEAL to sleep. Danno smiled as he gazed at the exhausted man in his office. Sometimes, all his husband needed was a little sleep, but once Steve got into action mode, it was really hard to make him stop and take a breather. If he was willingly deciding to take a nap in the middle of the day, he really must be tired.

 

Danny sighed once more and started on the work that had been interrupted when Kono had come in. Paperwork was such a bitch to deal with and it did not help that he had to do Steve’s as well. As expected, Steve was out in minutes.

 

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“Steve, babe, wake up its 12:15 PM,” Danno gentle shook his partner.

 

“I’m up,” Steve sat up and stretched, scratched his head, and proceeded to walk back to his office to get his keys. This week, both men decided to take separate cars to work in case one had to stay late because of their case. It was a good thing too because the twins really liked to ride in their Daddy’s truck because Danno’s car was their every day car, but the truck was used for special occasions. It was Steve’s turn to pick up the kids today and they were already excited about that too although Danny was suspicious that the twins loved to show off their father to their friends because of his reputation as a bad ass. They knew of him since the news loved to report on his unorthodox ways of catching criminals which Danny was sure they all got a kick out of. The females of the school and the moms of the kids loved getting an eye full of Steve as well. At first Danny was a little jealous of the amount of attention his husband got, but one PTA meeting that both men attended helped in the females backing off. It’s not that they did not know who Danny was, but since they were hardly ever seen together outside of work, it made the ladies a bit more prone to be open about their attraction. Steve never paid attention because his thoughts and eyes were always on his husband. Yup, the PTA meeting cleared up all the misunderstandings, alright.

 

Steve waved at Danny as he left HQ. Danny waved back.

 

“Oh Steve, the things I do for love,” Danny said softly. He knew he would walk through hell and back for him. He was his partner, his friend, his lover and his husband. _There is nothing he would not do for him._

 

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As Steve arrived at the preschool, he noticed that all the parking spaces and the waiting areas were full. So he decided to park across the street at the coffee shop to wait until it was time. He arrived a few minutes early since his kids’ school was not very far from HQ. There were days when he would take the kids back to work until he and Danny finished what they had going on. Those days were pretty fun and cool and Chin and Kono loved to have the rugrats there too.

 

As Steve thought about his kids and waited, he failed to notice the car that had been following him since he left work, steadily trailing him until he parked his car.

 

Steve saw the front of the school explode with kids and their teachers. He saw his son and daughter run out to the bench where they always waited for their Pop or Danno.

 

_There they are_.

 

He exited the car, proceeded to cross the street while waving at his kids as they saw their dad and started running for the sidewalk to wait for him.

 

The car swerved out of its space a few cars behind and gunned it.

 

All the twins could hear were their own screams and all they could see was their dad lying motionless on the street.

 

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“Alright thanks for this and I’ll see the governor soon,” Danny said as he hung up with Denning’s secretary. He just hoped that he could convince the governor that a game show as PR was not such a good idea. In fact they did not really need any publicity because their high success rate in solving crimes spoke for itself.

 

He looked at his phone on his desk and saw that it had died, “Great. This thing needs to be recharged and I left the charger at home,” he said out loud.

 

“Danny?” Chin said as he entered the blond man’s office.

 

Said man looked up and at the look on Chin’s face silently said, “Steve.”

 

“He was run over in front of the kids’ school, he is in the hospital already and Kono has the twins with her. Danny, they are in really bad shape.”

 

Danny did not hear the latter half of Chin’s report. He went sailing through the doors and down the stairs, his keys at the ready in his hand. Danny stepped on it and got to the hospital in record time.

 

He left the car in front of the ER with the keys inside so that Chin would take care of it since he knew the man was probably not that far behind him. All he could think about right now is Steve and his kids. He burst through the ER and spotted Kono with Stevie and Eddie. As soon as they saw their Danno they ran to him and he accepted them in his arms.

 

“He is in surgery. The doctor will be in to talk to you as soon as he is out,” Kono announced without any sort of preamble. Danny was grateful for that.

 

“How bad is he and what the hell happened?” he asked as he clutched his daughter and son tighter.

 

“According to a witness, a black SUV came out of a parking space a few cars behind Steve and hit him. We were able to get plates from him and are currently waiting for a full report from HPD. From what I can tell, this car had been following Steve since he left HQ and was just waiting for an opportunity. This is not some random accident, Danny, this was personal.”

 

Danny paid close attention to the word _personal_. He looked down and saw that Stevie had been crying. Eddie was eerily silent and looked up at him with hollow eyes. He prayed every day that he never had to see these looks in his children’s eyes, but this dreaded day had come, so now he was at a loss as to how he would explain what happened to their father.

 

Kono continued, “Its bad, Danny.” She looked at the twins and silently communicated that she would not submit them to how hurt Steve was. These kids had witnessed their dad being hit with car, so for all they knew, he may not make it.

 

Chin came into the waiting room and nodded towards Kono and Danny.

 

“Chin, do you mind staying with the twins while I talk to Kono?”

 

“Sure, Danny. Come on kids lets go get something to eat,” Stevie and Eddie obeyed, but their movements were mechanical. Almost as if they were robots instead of children without any sense of what they were doing. They looked back at Danno with such a look of misery that Danno would never, as long as he lived, forget.

 

“They saw everything, didn’t they?”

 

“They ran towards him once they saw him lying on the street. Their teacher called 911, but the twins were. . .”

 

Danny saw the reluctance in Kono’s eyes, so he said without wanting, but needing to know what happened, “Tell me.”

 

Kono looked at him and said “They ran towards Steve in the middle of the street and started shaking him to wake up even at the risk of getting run over themselves. Stevie went into shock and Eddie was yelling that their father was okay and that he would open his eyes soon. Their teacher was able to get them off of Steve once the ambulance arrived. They were trying to contact you but you would not answer your cell or your desk phone.”

 

“I was talking to Denning’s secretary and my phone was dead,” he said in a daze.

 

“That is what I thought, so they called Chin and he called me. I was picking up some lunch by there and I was the first officer on the scene. Chin said he would tell you. I’m so sorry Danny about all of this but I promise you we will find out who did this.”

 

Danny heard Kono as if she were very far away. He was no longer in the hospital or even in his own body. None of this was happening. He would wake up in his office and realize that this was some sick dream and that Steve would walk in any minute through the doors of HQ with their kids in tow.

 

“Danny!”  Kono yelled as she caught Danny before he hit the floor. He started hyperventilating and convulsing, quickly realized that he must be having some sort of panic attack. She slid slowly down to the floor as she yelled, “Somebody help me!” towards the ER nurses who came rushing in when they saw Danny in her arms. They took him from her and rushed him to an open bed. Chin came back with the twins at that precise moment and once again the kids were subjected to their father being carried away by doctors.

 

This time there were no screams or hysterics. Instead, in a voice that held none of the energy or the happiness with which Stevie and Eddie talked, both children said in unison, “Our daddies are dying.”

 

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Danny woke up with something that he thinks he heard Chin saying before he left HQ, _They are in bad shape_.

 

_Why would he say that? Who was he talking about?_

 

With that on his mind, he slowly came to and woke up to find himself lying on a hospital bed. Everything was so clear and white that he had to shield his eyes.

 

“Daniel?” he heard from a quiet voice from somewhere in the room.

 

“Rachel?” he asked as he was able to pinpoint who was calling him. She sat on a couch with sleeping Stevie in her arms and Grace curled up next to her with Eddie.

 

“What happened?” His head was in knots.

 

“You had a panic attack and you have been unconscious for the past hour,” Rachel said gently.

 

“Why did I. . .” but before he could finish, suddenly everything came rushing back to Danny. Steve was run over. The kids were in hysterics. He passed out.

 

“Steve,” was all he said as he started sitting up, but quickly laid back down as everything started spinning.

 

“Daniel, let me call for a doctor,” Rachel suggested though Danny was more focused on trying to get everything to stay still. Rachel laid Stevie gently in her place on the sofa and walked out.

 

Danny let her leave and looked up at the ceiling, trying hard to concentrate and end his dizziness. He had not had a panic attack since he was a kid, so he could not say that he missed it much.

 

The doctor came in a minute later and checked his vitals. He was saying something to Danny, but he was not paying attention because his mind kept going back to Steve.

 

“How is he?” Danny heard himself say.

 

“How is who, detective?” the doctor asked perplexed.

 

“My husband Steve Williams-McGarrett. He was brought in earlier before I lost consciousness,” Danny nearly yelled.

 

“You know what, never mind, I’ll go find him myself,” Danny sat up in bed and although he started swaying again, fought through the haze because he needed to see Steve.

 

“Detective, I am not in charge of your husband’s case, but please give me the chance to find out and then you can be escorted to see him,” the nice doctor pleaded, clearly worried that Danny may have another relapse considering Danny looked deathly pale and had started perspiring with his efforts to get to the door without collapsing.

 

“Danny, please let him go out and see what is going on with Steve,” Danny heard Rachel plead.

 

He turned around and saw the worried look on both their faces.

 

He turned to the doctor and said, “You have one minute to get back in here and tell me what the hell is going on.”

 

The doctor clearly did not like to be given orders, but it seemed that he ceded considering that Danny’s tone was coming from a place of desperation.

 

“I will be back as soon as I can,” the doctor assured.

 

“Rachel, you know something?”

 

“Not enough. When Kono called me, Steve was already in surgery. I am not next of kin, so even if I tried, no one would tell me anything.”

 

Danny took a good look at his ex-wife and saw worry. He looked down at his kids and despite the little spat that happened, all three were fast asleep. The detective made his way back to his bed and proceeded to lie down. He saw Rachel take a chair from the corner and set it beside his bed.

 

“Danny I am so sorry about all of this,” Rachel said to him. “Kono called me to let me know what was going on and to ask if I could watch over the twins while you recovered. I’ve been here ever since.”

 

“I am sorry if I was acting like a jerk just now. But this is. . .”

 

“Steve? He is in critical condition. Anybody in your place would act the same way.”

 

Danny turned to look at Rachel and said, “Did you call just call me Danny?”

 

Rachel might have blushed, but answered, “Yes, I did. I’ve called you that before haven’t I?”

 

Danny could not for the life of him remember a time that she had. It just showed how extremely screwed up he was right now. He did not know what to make of it. The way she said it, twice in under a minute, felt so intimate that a wave of anger passed over him. Only Steve had the right to sound so intimate with him.

 

Rachel clearly sensed his mood and said, “I’m sorry if I offended you. It won’t happen again.”

 

“No, I’m sorry. You did nothing wrong.”

 

 Before he could say anything else, the doctor came in.

 

“Detective, your husband is still in surgery. He came in with multiple fractures and internal bleeding. I have requested that as soon as he is out, his surgeon come and find you here. You should rest until then. The drugs that were administered to you may make you feel nauseated for a while,” the doctor finished.

 

“Thank you doctor. I apologize for my behavior earlier.”

 

“Completely understandable detective. If you need anything else, please do not hesitate to ask,” and with that the doctor left.

 

Danny turned to Rachel and before he could ask her anything told him, “Kono and Chin asked me to tell you to call them as soon as you were awake to update you on what is going on with Steve’s would be killer,” she said as she opened a drawer and handed him his phone.

 

He gave her a grateful glance and accepted the phone. Chin answered on the first ring.

 

“Danny? You okay partner?” Chin questioned.

 

“I feel like crap, but it’s not me I am worried about. What the hell is going on Chin?”

 

“We traced the plates and found the SUV that hit Steve. Not surprisingly, it was stolen and abandoned on the side of the highway. No fingerprints and no other clues to indicate who might have done this. We could not get a clear description from the witness who saw it all happen, only that he was a Caucasian male, wore a dark hoodie and dark sunglasses. Kono and I decided to look back though our old cases and see whether anyone might have a vendetta against Steve, but so far we have nothing. Either they are all in jail or have no relatives to want to kill Steve,” Chin reported.

 

Danny let all the information wash over him. How were they supposed to track this guy down? There were no clear witness reports and the car had been stolen.

 

“Danny, are you still there?”

 

“Yeah I am. Did you say something?”

 

“I said that Kono believes this is personal and I do to. This was premeditated, so the guy may want to check in later to see if Steve is actually dead. Maybe if we wait him out a little, we might catch him.”

 

Danny turned around and looked at his kids, sleeping peacefully. Their father had nearly been killed in front of them and the close call would stay with them forever. There was no better way to exact revenge on someone than to kill them in front of their own flesh and blood. Just then, a thought occurred to him.

 

“Chin, are you at the office right now?”

 

“Yeah, we both are. Why, what’s wrong?”

 

“Sit tight for a minute. I may have a way of tracking this guy down.”

 

“What are you thinking Danny?”

 

“He was not after Steve. He was after me,” before Chin could say anything, he hung up the phone and started dialing.

 

“Daniel, who are you calling?”

 

“Jersey PD,” Danny answered as the phone began to ring.

 

“Why?”

 

“Because I know who did this and my ex-boss will tell me if I am right.”

 

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“Thanks Hugh. Just send everything over here so that my team can process everything,” Danny hung up.

 

“Rachel, I appreciate you coming down here to look after my kids. But, can I ask you for another favor?”

 

“Of course, what do you need?”

 

“Can you look after them for a while longer? I do not want them here right now. It is just too much for them to handle and they are already freaked out as it is. Seeing Steve might take them over the edge. They are strong kids, but I do not want to push it.”

 

“Yes I’ll take them. They can stay with me for as long as you need them to.”

 

“Thank you. Hopefully, we can all get out of here soon, but to be on the safe side, I’m going to send you all to a safe house and have HPD stay on the lookout day and night. Is Stan on the island?”

 

“He is visiting his parents with Charlie on the main land. Won’t be back until next week.”

 

“Good. I’ll call Chin to arrange it then.” Once more Danny dialed Chin and explained the conversation he had with his former chief. He also told him to put in the request for the safe house and the day and night guards. Once he was off the phone, Stevie and Eddie approached him, having woken up while he had been on the phone. He saw that Grace has woken up as well.

 

“Danno, where are we going?” Stevie asked.

 

“Sweetie, son, you, auntie Rachel and Grace are going to stay at a safe house for a few days while me and dad stay in the hospital,” Danny explained.

 

“But why Danno? Can’t we stay with you?” Stevie pleaded.

 

“No sweetheart, not right now. You’ll be better with Gracie and auntie to look after you. I promise me and dad will come get you as soon as we can,” Danno told them.

 

“He will come after us too, won’t he?” Eddie said in a quiet voice.

 

Danno nearly let out a scream of anguish at having his son perceive the dire circumstances they were in.

 

With a will that he did not know he possessed, he calmly told his son, “No Eddie, your dad and I are just being safe. Remember what we always tell you two?”

 

“Better to be safe than sorry,” the twins said in unison.

 

“Always. Now, auntie Kono is going to get you some clothes from home for your stay. We won’t be able to talk too much, so I’ll call you when I can. Be good for auntie Rachel and Gracie.”

 

“What about daddy, Danno? Can’t we see him?” Stevie asked.

 

“Not right now, Stevie. Daddy is in surgery. He will be okay, you’ll see.”

 

Stevie did not look convinced, nor Eddie for that matter, so Danny had to say something that he never thought he would say because he and Steve always made it a point to be as honest with their kids as they could be, but right now he did not feel so sure about what would be happening in the next few days and hard as it was, he needed to focus. The only thing that he was sure of was that he would do anything in his power to keep his family safe.

 

“Stevie, Eddie Danno is going to make you promise something. Will you do it?”

 

Both kids looked at each other, then at Danno, “Yes, Danno.”

 

“Please, just this once, listen to Danno without questioning him. Believe me when I say Daddy will be okay and that you two are safe. Remember how me and dad always say that things happen sometimes without us planning them?”

 

The twins nodded.

 

“Well, this is one of those times. Promise me that you will trust Danno when he says that everything will be alright.”

 

Stevie was the first one to promise, but Eddie remained quiet.

 

“Son?”

 

“I promise,” he finally said.

 

“Okay. Do _exactly_ as you are told. No smart ass remarks or getting into trouble. I mean it,” Danny gave them his most serious face and after they registered that he meant business, hugged them both tightly.

 

He let them go and kissed each on their head.

 

“Gracie, hon, come over here,” Danno directed at his eldest daughter.

 

“It’s okay Danno. We will be fine. I’ll take care of them,” Gracie said as she gave him a smile.

 

“And watch your own back, sweetheart. Take care of each other,” Danny told her as he kissed her forehead.

 

Just then, Grover came into the room with one of his SWAT guys.

 

“Danny?” he said as he approached Danny’s bed. Eddie and Stevie ran to him to give their uncle Grover a hug.

 

“Are you taking us to the safe house uncle Grover?” Eddie asked.

 

“I sure am sport. Why don’t you make David over there give you some of those HPD stickers you guys like so much while I talk to your father, huh?”

 

“Okay,” Stevie and Eddie answered. 

 

“Grover? HPD sent you?” Danny questioned.

 

“No, I volunteered. As soon as I heard your request come through I called Chin to see what was going on. He told me what happened, so I told Duke me and my boys would take care of this. HPD is on standby, but my team will guard the house and escort your kids there,” Grover informed him.

 

“You did not have to do this. HPD could have handled it,” Danny responded.

 

“You and I both know that you and Steve would feel better if I was there. Hell, _I_ would feel better if I was there. Besides, you are ohana and we stick together,” Grover said with a serious tone.

 

Danny had to admit that it took a while for him to warm up to Grover in the beginning. He loathed to admit it, but he felt jealousy towards the man whenever he partnered up with Steve. Danny considered himself to be the only partner Steve would ever need, but once he got to know the SWAT leader better, the man was not so bad. It also helped that Grover had covered their asses on more than once occasion over the years and had come to love Stevie and Eddie as if they were his own. His daughter going off to college might have had something to do with it, but Danny and Steve had kept quiet about it.

 

“You’re right. Thanks Grover, this means a lot.”

 

“Don’t mention it man. We should get going. HPD has secured the hospital and four of my men are on standby to guard your room and Steve’s once he gets out of surgery.”

 

“Great, but hopefully I’ll get out of here soon and stay with Steve.”

 

“Okay. Once you move out, HPD will secure the whole hospital to be on the safe side in case this SOB tries to get in. You have a lead?”

 

“Yes, I do. Once Kono and Chin process all the info, they’ll get back to you.”

 

“Good. Take it easy man and I’ll keep you updated.”

 

“Thanks,” Danny said as he watched Grover turn around and round up the group.

 

“Okay ladies and gents, let’s head out,” Grover announced as he led the twins by the hand, Gracie and Rachel behind them with David from SWAT trailing from the back. At the last minute, Rachel turned around and walked towards Danny, giving him a hug.

 

“Everything will be alright. Kono will come with clothes for you and Gracie later,” Danno said as he accepted her hug.

 

“Thanks. We will be fine and please take care of yourself. Steve needs you all to stay strong,” Rachel told him.

 

“I know,” was all Danny could muster.

 

And with that his kids and ex left his room. Danny had an urge to call them back so that he could look after them himself, but knew that they would be safe, especially if Grover was guarding them.

 

Now all he had to do wait for his husband’s surgeon to tell him what was going on with the love of his life.

 

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**_48Hours Later_ **

 

 

Danny Williams-McGarrett stood by the window of his husband’s hospital room, looking down at all the people coming and going. There was a sort of finality in this place that made you dread even the sight of it, but once again Danny and Steve had managed to end up here. Once you were in the hospital, there was no way of knowing if you were coming out again. Life had been good to them both over the years and had made sure that they always did, but there were a lot of people who were not so lucky.

 

Danny turned around and looked at Steve. He looked so small and fragile, the complete opposite of the strong, stubborn and virile make he had fallen in love with. Dread filled him at the thought that he came close to losing him two days ago, at the thought that he still could. The doctors were not making any promises, although they did say that Steve was stable and was responding to all the work they had done on him. In the end, Steve had broken his leg, his arm, a few ribs with one puncturing his lung, causing the internal bleeding. The nasal canula that Steve wore reminded Danny that every breath he took was precious and a good sign that he might make it through. Steve was also in a drug induced coma, making it easier for him to recover and avoid the intense pain he would feel had he been conscious.

 

Danny sighed and took his place next to him. He had hardly slept the past two days and more so when Steve had gone into cardiac arrest last night. The doctors had no idea what could have brought that on, but guessed that it was probably the potency of the drugs they were feeding him and resolved to lower the doses. Since then, Steve had remained stable. All Danny could feel was panic.

 

He had only talked to the twins twice since they were taken to the safe house. Grover reported that nothing had been going on so far and that everything was under control. Chin had called him to say that HPD was on alert and so was Homeland Security at the airport, so they would know if Frazier, the lunatic recently released from jail behind Steve’s accident, made a move around the island or tried to flee. They had received photos of him going through airport security a few days before he ran Steve over, but had not been able to locate him since. Chin and Kono each took a team of HPD officers to possible location where Frazier could stay and even questioned probable allies of his. So far, nothing had come of it.  

 

Danny felt a mixture of relief and anger at having discovered who had done this to his family because at least he had someone to blame: himself. Back when he was in Jersey, way before he divorced Rachel and even before Grace was born, he put away a petty thug running drugs for the local drug lord. Frazier was Danny’s ticket to finally put the SOB behind bars once and for all. Unfortunately, Frazier had a family: two kids and wife. Supposedly, running drugs was the only way that he could support them and that even if he wanted to, Frazier was in too deep to ever think of getting out. Doing so could cost him his life and the life of his family.

 

He would be lying if he said he did not feel sympathy towards the man, but Danny pressured him anyway to give up the drug lord’s location and promised that he would try to cut a deal with the DA so that Frazier’s family would be taken care of.

 

On the day that Danny, his partner Grace and the SWAT team came down on the location given by Frazier, shit hit the fan. Danny had taken Frazier with them so that they could be sure of where they were going, but once they arrived, everything changed. Once Josie, the drug lord, caught wind that Frazier may have talked, he kidnapped Frazier’s family to be used as leverage. Josie had been able to lure away Frazier’s family with lies and had succeeded in carrying out his plan of getting back at Frazier. A standoff ensued and in the middle of the ensuing chaos of trying to get Frazier’s family out of there, his wife was shot and had died on the spot. Fortunately, Josie was taken into custody and some of his goons were either arrested or killed.

 

Danny can still remember the cries of Frazier’s children and his heartbroken sobs. No husband or parent should ever have to endure such visceral pain, but he did. Frazier was put in jail and his kids became wards of the state. Before moving to Hawaii, Danny checked in on them and he was glad to know that they were placed with a caring and nurturing family.

 

Danny regretted how the situation had gotten so out of hand so quickly when everything had seemed to be coming together. Even though Danny had tried to do everything in his power for Frazier’s family to be okay, he had failed and now knew that Frazier blamed him for his wife’s death. It should have been Danny picking up the twins from school, not Steve, but it didn’t matter who it was because the outcome would still have been the same and Frazier would still have succeeded in inflicting such unbearable agony. He wanted Danny to feel what he did when his wife died in his arms and the pain he felt at having his kids scream for their mother.

 

Danny took Steve’s uninjured hand between his own.

 

“This is all my fault Steve. I am so sorry babe that you are in here. It should have been me. Please come back to us. Don’t give up and come back. We need you so much,” Danny was close to crying, but kept the tears at bay. “I love you like I have never loved anyone before. If you die, part of me dies with you. Don’t make your kids grow up without you.”

 

Danny gave in and cried. He let out all the suffering and all the grief, all the worry and the heartbreak out on Steve’s chest.

 

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Danny woke up to the sound of his phone going off. He must have dozed off sometime in the afternoon because the sky was clearly starting to darken.

 

_How long was I out for?_

 

He grabbed his phone and answered, “Detective Williams.”

 

“Danny, it’s Chin. How is he doing?”

 

Danny looked over his husband and he looked just as frail as before.

 

“The same. Got an update?”

 

“Yes, I do. I think we may have caught a break.”

 

“Tell me,” Danny nearly yelled with anticipation.

 

“One of the locales that Kono and I have been investigating turned up a few surprises. It was a hotel room that was reserved under an alias. One of Josie’s many known associates usually booked a hotel room to conduct business without anyone knowing the wiser. Since HPD and the FBI have never been able to get hard core evidence to bring these guys down, we figured we would have enough cause this time. We were right. The whole place has pictures of all four of you out and about on the island. Guns and cash were hidden in the closet and it looks like he is still staying here. Kono and I are going to wait him out to make the arrest.”

 

Danny listened to everything that Chin was saying. He looked over at Steve again and decided that he should be the one making the arrest.

 

“Chin, can you put Kono on the phone?”

 

“Yeah. Here she is.”

 

“Hey Danny. What do you need?”

 

“I need you to come back here and look after Steve while I join Chin at the lookout. There are HPD officers all over the hospital and two are stationed outside this room. You should be fine with backup.”

 

“Danny are you sure about this?”

 

“Only that it needs to be me who books this asshole for what he did to my husband.”

 

There was a beat of silence before she said, “Okay, I am on my way now.”

 

She passed the phone back to Chin. Not surprisingly, the man guessed what Danny had ordered Kono to do.

 

“You sure about this Danny?” Chin repeated.

 

“There is a good chance that Frazier is coming back for those guns to finish Steve off. This has been all over the news, so he might know that Steve is still alive. With the manpower we have here, he cannot get close which makes me believe why he is laying low. He is coming up with a different plan and I want to catch him before he executes it.”

 

“Okay, brother. Kono just left so she should be there in 10.”

 

“Thanks, Chin. I’ll see you in a few,” Danny hung up the phone and waited for Kono to arrive.

 

 

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“Hey Danny, I’m here,” Kono announced as she came through the doorway.

 

Danny looked up from his position by Steve’s side. He was holding Steve’s hand between his own with his head bowed. To anyone that might have seen him, it would have looked like he was praying, but Kono knew that he wasn’t. It looked more like he was asking for forgiveness. From who or for what, Kono still had decide.

 

“Hey Kono. Doctor will be in here in a little while to check up on him. All I need is for you to hang tight,” Danny decided.

 

“You got it boss. . .I mean,” Kono looked embarrassed by the name switch, but Danny was far from offended or angry.

 

“Really hope it does not come to that since there is so much patience I can dole out for you rookie,” Danny said with a hint of sarcasm to diffuse the situation. Kono caught it right away and took it gratefully.

 

“Don’t worry about a thing Danny. I’ll keep an eye on him. No one will get to him while I’m here,” Kono reassured the man.

 

“I know,” Danny said and gave her a thank you hug and with that left the room without looking  back. Doing so would crumble his resolve.

 

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“Chin, give me an update,” Danny told Chin right away as soon as he arrived at the hotel.

 

Chin turned around and saw the man for the first time in two days. Danny had refused to leave Steve’s side and Kono and Chin had refused to keep searching for Frazier, so any communication had been through the phone only. Danny looked like he had not slept in days. His face was gaunt, he looked like he had lost weight and aged about ten years. Chin knew what having someone hanging by a thin thread in the hospital felt like. Nothing could make you feel better unless the person you were there for opened their eyes and told you they were okay. As far as Chin was aware, Steve was in a coma. There was no one who could reassure Danny unless it was his husband opening his eyes.

 

“Hey brother. HPD had surrounded the whole area dressed as civilians. No need to spook Frazier. Hotel security is monitoring everyone who comes in and out. So far nothing yet. I’m guessing we will be here all night,” Chin informed.

 

Danny listened and asked, “Which hotel room is his?”

 

They had been standing out in the court yard. To those that were passing by, they were just two men having a nice conversation. What people did not notice were their concealed weapons and grim determination.

 

“Room 217. Right across the hall,” Chin mentioned a quick jerk of his head.

 

“That one of ours?” Danny said as a cleaning maid made her way down the hall.

 

“No she is not, but we do have one that is. Hold on for a second. Let me radio this in,” Chin said as he made his way down the hall in the opposite direction.

 

Danny watched the maid make her way into the room next to 217. From where hewas standing, he noticed that 217 was an adjoining room right before she closed it. As far as he knew, cleaning maids were not supposed to close the rooms they were doing housekeeping and they did not do their job this late. Something was not right. He dialed Chin’s number.

 

“Yeah Danny? I’m just talking to head of security and tells me that she is just one of the regulars, but. . . ,” Chin said.

 

“Something is not right Chin. I’m going in,” Danny responded.

 

“Danny no, wait for me. . .” but Danny did not wait to hear him out. He made his way across the court yard and went straight for 216.

 

He took the maid by surprise as she was walking into 217, clearly looking for something. 

 

“Five-0. Hands up where I can see them!” Danny ordered drawing his weapon on her.

 

“I didn’t do anything!” the maid, with clear panic on her face, nearly screamed.

 

“You were told not to go into 217. Why are you doing it anyway. I said hands where I can see them!”

 

“He paid me. I swear that is all. He wanted me to get his bag for him without anyone knowing,” the maid explaining, starting to cry.

 

“And you did not think that was suspicious?” Danny yelled.

 

“He knew the place was crawling with HPD officers and that hotel security was looking for him. Please don’t arrest me, I have a family. Please I did not mean anyone any harm,” the maid answered with clear distress.

 

Just then, Chin came in through the door with his gun at the ready.

 

“What happened?”

 

“Frazier paid her to get his bag. Where is he now?” he directed at the maid.

 

“He said he would meet me at the Denny’s across the street in 15 minutes.”

 

When Danny had run into 216, two other officers were by his side and were standing behind him, only making room when Chin came in through the door.

 

“You two take care of her. Chin and I are going to the Denny’s across the street,” Danny did not wait to hear they confirmations, but ran out the door with Chin on his heels.

 

As they got closer to the restaurant, Danny could hear Chin barking orders to HPD to surround the area they were headed towards.

 

Danny went inside the restaurant, completely ignoring the girl at the entrance shouting out to him. He surveyed all the patrons and saw a guy with a hoodie making his way through one of the emergency doors. He set off the alarms and Danny ran after him.

 

Frazier tried to run across the street but two squad cars blocked him off.

 

“Frazier, there is nowhere to go. You are out of options!” Danny shouted at Frazier as he closed in on him.

 

Frazier turned around, took off his hood and looked straight at Danny.

 

“Give it up Frazier. You are surrounded.”

 

“It should have been you instead of him. More satisfaction would have come from that, but I guess it was not your time, but maybe this time it will be,” Frazier said in calm voice.

 

Danny could see him reaching for the something inside his hoodie. He had his own pointed at Frazier as well as the rest of HPD and Chin.

 

“Frazier, I’m sorry for what happened to your wife and kids. She should not have died the way she did and for that I am deeply sorry,” Danny tried.

 

“She was your responsibility. I told you to take care of her and you didn’t. My kids had to watch her die and now your family will have to watch you die and your boy toy,” Danny could tell that Frazier had a grip on his gun. He would draw it and try to take Danny out.

 

“Don’t do this Frazier,” Danny reasoned.

 

“You think I’m afraid of dying? I am a shell of who I once was. You need to pay for what happened to my family because if it wasn’t for you, Betsy would still be alive and our kids would not have to be living with some strangers,” Frazier said.

 

“But I guess if I die now, I need to take someone with me. Preferably you, but I can consider myself satisfied with your precious Navy SEAL. Your phone should be ringing,” he directed at Chin.

 

Chin never wavered, but his phone did ring.

 

“Chin, answer it!” Danny yelled never taking his eyes off of Frazier.

 

“You see Williams, I made sure I had all my bases covered. I knew that there was a chance I would fail, so I made sure that I had a Plan B. Steve should be breathing his last by now,” Frazier took out his gun and fired.

 

Despite his quickness, Danny was faster and shot him in the chest. The bullet that Frazier fired grazed his arm, but he would live.

 

“Danny, Steve went into cardiac arrest again, they are trying to resuscitate him!”Chin told Danny.

 

Danny felt the familiar panic rise up again. He did not give Chin an answer, but instead got into a squad car, turned the lights on, and rushed to the hospital.

 

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Once again, Danny left his car in the ER entrance and made his way to Steve’s room. Kono was standing outside his room.

 

“What happened?”

 

“He went into cardiac arrest again, but they were able to bring him back. He is stable now,” Kono reassured.

 

Danny gave out a sigh of relief.

 

“Frazier knew this was going to happen,” Danny said.

 

“The doctors realized that the drugs he was given earlier today were not the right ones. They were switched and hold a few nurses responsible. HPD has them in custody,” Kono answered.

 

“They were probably paid off by Frazier or he was able to somehow switch the drugs himself. He was paying off a maid at the hotel to get his things.”

 

“Did you get to him?”

 

“He’s dead.”

 

They turned around to the sound of running footsteps and saw Chin coming down the hall.

 

“How is he?”  


“Stable. HPD has the culprits in custody,” Kono said.

 

Like Danny, Chin gave a sigh of relief and said, “Danny, Kono and I got it from here. We’ll clean up the mess and keep you updated. Let us know how Steve progresses.”

 

“I will. And guys, thanks for this. I could not have done this without you,” Danny told his team.

 

“Brah, you do not even have to mention it. Steve is Ohana and Ohana stick together,” Chin said as he put an arm around Danny.

 

“But still, you know thanks.”

 

“We love you too Danny. Want us to get the twins for you?” Kono said.

 

“No, I’ll have them stay with Rachel at her house and when Steve is awake, I’ll pick them up. Grover should know by now what happened with Frazier, so I’ll call him in a minute.”

 

“Alright. We will see you soon,” Chin said and left the hospital with Kono in tow.

 

“Detective Williams-McGarrett?” A doctor approached him.

“That’s me, how is my husband?”

 

“Stable. He is being administered the drugs that he needs now, but he is no longer in a coma. I want to sincerely apologize for this dangerous mistake.”

 

“There is a chance that the nurses may not have been at fault, but HPD and my team will handle it. Either way, I want to thank you for taking care of my husband,” Danny told him.

 

“We take our job here seriously Detective and I am glad that your husband was able to pull through this. You can join him if you wish,” the doctor said.

 

“Thanks,” with one last smile, the doctor walked away.

 

Danny entered Steve’s room. He looked to have more color in his cheeks, but he still looked weak. It would probably take a while before he got back to his normal self, but at least he was alive. Danny gave him a soft kiss on the lips and took his usual seat by his side.

 

“We’re in the clear babe. All we need now is for you to open your eyes. Stevie and Eddie miss you. I miss you. Come back to us, please,” Danny said pleadingly.

 

 

**_Three Days Later_ **

 

 

. . . And Daddy me and Eddie made you a ton of get well cards and even promised you that we would be good for the rest of the year if you got better soon. Eddie said he would give up watching Spongebob every day too,” Stevie told her dad as she was sitting next to him on the bed. Eddie was on his other side.

 

“And I meant it pops, I will stop watching it. I’m too addicted anyway,” Eddie said in a serious tone.

 

Steve looked at his son and wondered how it was possible for him to sound so much like an adult. He gave his son a kiss on his head and turned around and gave Stevie the same.

 

“Well, thank you for the cards and promises, but you can still watch Spongebob Eddie. I’m better now,” Steve assured his son.

 

Eddie smiled, but didn’t say anything.

 

They were all crowded in his hospital room. Rachel was there with Gracie as well. Mary had called him earlier, asking how he was and even his mom called in from wherever she was at the moment to find out how he was doing. God only knew how she found out about him since she told no one where she was and did not leave a number to reach her. He assured them that he was getting better and that he would be released in two days.

 

“Alright you two, time for you to go home and get some rest. You have school tomorrow,” Danny told the twins.

 

“But Danno can’t we stay a little longer,” Stevie pleaded.

 

“No baby girl, but as soon as school is over, you’ll come and stay with daddy again,” Danny said.

 

Stevie and Eddie both groaned their assent. Rachel and Gracie laughed at their antics as they took their hands and bade farewell to Steve. Chin and Kono said their goodbyes as well and told Steve they would check on him tomorrow.

 

When they were left alone, Steve looked at his husband.

 

“You have a face.”

 

“That’s usually my line.”

 

“I know, but you do. Come over here,” Steve told Danny as he scooted to the side of his bed to make room for his husband.

 

Danny took the vacated spot and placed his head on Steve’s chest.

 

“I know I scared you. I’m fine now, though, so do me a favor and relax,” Steve said as he rubbed Danny’s back.

 

“I nearly lost you. _We_ nearly lost you and it’s all my fault,” Danny said.

 

“Stop that. What happened is not your fault. Things happen in our line of work that don’t turn out like we want them too. If I could go back and do it all over again, I would gladly give my life for yours.”

 

“Don’t say that Steven.”

 

“I mean that Daniel. I love you and will do anything to keep my family alive. I will always trade my life for yours and the twins.”

 

Danny looked up at his man and gave him the most passionate of kisses.

 

When they broke the kiss, Danny said, “Let’s just talk about something else. I’ve been living in my own private kind of hell this week and I don’t want to be there again.”

 

Steve knew what Danny had gone through. Although he was not alone and their team, as well as Grover, helped out it still put Danny in a tough position. Luckily, their kids seemed to be acting as they normally do and looked like they were not in any kind of funk of which both dads were grateful. Still, Stevie and Eddie will always carry this moment around with them.

“Stop thinking, Steven, I mean it,” Danny said as he held on to Steve a little bit tighter.

 

“Nothing bad I promise. Man, I cannot wait to get out of here.”

 

“Patience , sailor, patience. Frazier’s antics really did a number on you.”

 

“I know.”

 

“What no argument?”

 

“Nah, you’re just going to win anyway.”

 

“I think I should call the doctor.”

 

“Why? I’m fine.”

 

“No you are not if you are saying that I win arguments.”

 

“What if I just want to please you today?”

 

“Then I would say how sweet of you, but that I would still find that eerie.”

 

“You’ve been through a lot Danno. You do not need me being stubborn.”

 

Danny looked up at Steve suspiciously.

 

“I’m serious Danno. I just want you to be happy.”

 

“You always make me happy. Except when you are being an ass.”

 

“I love you too Daniel.”

 

“Same here, Super SEAL. Same here.”

**Author's Note:**

> If there is something that confuses you, worry not because it is most likely going to be explained in the next installment. Also, this might come off as a little out of character for everyone involved, but I still hope that it all works out and that you enjoy it! :)


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